Jeffrey

Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and ex-CEO Jeffrey Skilling were actively involved in the day-to-day financial dealings at their company and either knew about or took part in some of the alleged wrongdoing, the former chief of investor relations testified Monday.

Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling never broke the law, never stole any money and never lied to the public about hiding billions of dollars in losses, defense attorneys told jurors last week as the trial of the former top executives took center stage in Houston. The prosecution, however, relying on actual statements and an eyewitness, began to show how the ex-executives attempted to deceive the public in the months preceding Enron’s implosion.

Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling never broke the law, never stole any money and never lied to the public about hiding billions of dollars in losses, defense attorneys told jurors Tuesday in opening statements. However, the prosecution claimed the opposite is true, supported by actual statements and eyewitnesses, which demonstrate how the ex-executives attempted to deceive the public in the months preceding Enron’s implosion.

Opening arguments were expected to begin Tuesday in the trial of former Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth Lay and CEO Jeffrey Skilling, after a 12-member jury and four alternates were chosen Monday in Houston. Lay, 63, faces seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. Skilling, 52, faces 31 counts of fraud, conspiracy, insider trading and deceiving auditors. Following the joint trial, Lay also faces four charges of bank fraud involving his personal banking.

Former Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth Lay and CEO Jeffrey Skilling tried once again Wednesday to delay their trial, which is set to begin on Monday. The two men’s legal teams requested that the pending trial be delayed until the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals considers a request to move the trial out of Houston.

Federal prosecutors plan to drop four, largely redundant felony fraud counts against former Enron President and CEO Jeffrey Skilling, according to a spokesman for the Justice Department.

As the trial for former Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and CEO Jeffrey Skilling draws closer, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake signaled he plans to let the opposing parties put on their respective cases — without a lot of innuendo and gossip. The case, which is scheduled to begin Jan. 30, will exclude tapes from ex-Enron traders joking about stealing money from California grandmothers, and it will not include former CFO Andrew Fastow’s apparent penchant for viewing pornography on his company computer.

A federal judge in Houston Monday dismissed a motion by former Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling asking that their criminal charges be dismissed. Jury selection in their joint trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 30.

Federal prosecutors have filed a motion in U.S. District Court alleging that former Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling attempted to deceive the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a deposition made in December 2001 concerning the sale of 500,000 shares of Enron stock. Court observers said the move may be in part to strengthen the case against Skilling, who faces trial later this month with Enron founder and former Chairman Kenneth Lay. Meanwhile, Lay and Skilling on Wednesday requested once again for their impending trial to be moved from Houston.